ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) – A suspect who allegedly robbed a woman in front of her two children in Kirkwood is in custody.

Dewitt D. Johnson, 44, of Washington Park, is accused of stealing a woman’s purse as she was getting her twin 3-year-old daughters out of the car in front of the HomeGoods store in the Kirkwood Commons on Dec. 10.

When the victim gave the suspect her purse, he grabbed it with such force that it knocked her to ground, police said.

After taking the purse, the suspect drove off with an accomplice in an early model Mercury Grand Marquis. The suspect later used the victim’s credit cards in Cahokia.

The woman and her children were not injured during the robbery.

According to police, Johnson was identified through an anonymous tip. He was found in Springfield, Missouri and arrested without incident.

Johnson has been charged with armed criminal action. His cash-only bond was set at $250,000.